Financial support for research stays abroad

PhD candidates and Postdocs (Norwegian stillingskategori Postdoktor) employed by the Faculty of Psychology.

Every country, except Norway. The foreign host institution must be a recognized research institution.

The main purpose of the funding scheme is to support the applicant in building and maintaining his/her international research network(s) and to give him/her the opportunity to develop new scientific skills. It is therefore a prerequisite that the applicant actively participates in the collaborative research work at the foreign institution. Traveling to conferences, meetings, workshops etc. will not be prioritized.

Research stays need to have a duration of at least 4 consecutive weeks. Research stays of less than 1 month (4 consecutive weeks) will not be granted. Research stays lasting longer than 6 months must be specifically justified. It is possible to include several stays within the same project.

1 April (of the current year)

31 January (in the year after the application deadline)

The contribution is based on fixed rates:

       Kr 22 000 (single) / 38 000 (family) per month

A family is defined as a PhD candidate/Postdoc accompanied by a spouse, common-law partner or registered partner and any children.

The funds can be used to cover:

• documented costs of settling in abroad and associated extra costs incurred in connection with the research stay
• travel costs (cheapest mode of travel)
• documented tuition costs for PhD candidates when taking part in programs at universities outside Norway

The applicant can apply to several funding sources to cover his/her costs related to the research stay abroad. The faculty, however, does not allow double funding, i.e. funding the same costs for the same activity through more than one source. The applicant needs to state in the application if he/she intends to apply to several funding sources, and needs to explain which (part of the) costs shall be covered by the faculty.

All documents, compiled into one pdf, are to be submitted via the electronic template at the website. The application is complete when it contains the following:

• filled out application scheme (eletronic application form at the website (right coloumn)
• project description (max 2 pages including references)
• CV for the applicant (max 2 pages)
• recommendation letter from the applicant’s institute/center/project leader
• invitation from the foreign research institution

The faculty’s Research Section checks the formal criteria. The applications are thereafter reviewed by a scientific committee. The ranking of the applications is based on the following criteria: the project's academic quality, the project's suitability in relation to the purpose of the funding scheme, the opportunity to establish or expand collaboration with outstanding and innovative research groups, knowledge gain / new scientific skills, the opportunity to apply new research methodology beyond what the Faculty of Psychology can offer, quality of the foreign host institution/research group, and the faculty's research strategy. Applicants who cannot cover the costs through funding from other external or internal sources will be prioritized.

The committee sends its recommendation to the Research Section. The Prodean/FFU (Faculty Committee for Research and Research Training) allocates funding based on the committee's evaluation and the amount of available funds.

The Research Section informs the applicant and his/her research group/institute about the result (via email).

The faculty’s Financial Department will send the official award letter to the applicant.

No later than one month after the end of the research stay, PhD candidates and Postdocs need to send a final report (please use the electronic template at the website). The reports must be approved by the FFU (Faculty Committee for Research and Research Training), and approval of the report is a prerequisite for granting future funds.

PhD candidates can apply for ECTS credits after the research stay. Follow this link to find out more about the compulsory training component and how research stays at other institutions are credited.

The candidate him/herself must plan the research stay and ensure that he/she has all the necessary documents, vaccines, accommodation, etc. The candidates should also pursue other funding opportunities. The faculty, however, does not allow double funding, i.e. funding the same costs for the same activity through more than one source. The applicant needs to state in the application if he/she intends to apply to several funding sources, and needs to explain which (part of the) costs shall be covered by the faculty.